DARK MILES is the version of me that doesn’t smile for the photo. It’s a solo project, but more than that, it’s scars turned into sound. I'm Pete Miles. This is what’s left when the noise outside dies down and the real noise begins.

What have you been up to this year & what can we expect in the coming months

This year’s been about writing, scrapping, rewriting, and learning how to breathe through distortion. I’ve been working on new songs. You can expect something darker, rougher, less polished. I want to take them to the stage soon. Intimate shows. Minimal lights. Maximum feeling.

What are your thoughts on AI and its effect on the music industry?

AI can write songs. Sure. But it can’t regret them. It can mimic a scream, but it doesn’t know what it’s like to scream alone at 1 a.m. in a bathroom. The industry might embrace it because it’s cheap and efficient. But real music isn’t efficient. It’s messy. It bleeds. And that’s what makes it human.

Is streaming a good or bad thing?

It’s both. It gave us access and exposure, but it also devalued the act of listening. Music became background noise. Disposable. I’m grateful people can find me with a click. I just hope they listen when they do.

If you could play with any musician, alive or dead, who would it be and why?

Mark Lanegan. No hesitation. That voice carried weight. Every word he sang felt like it had clawed its way out of a grave. I’d have learned a lot just by standing beside him.

What are your 3 favourite moments in your career?

1. The first time someone told me a song of mine helped them get through a dark time.

2. Hearing my track on a local radio station at 2 in the morning, by accident.

3. The night I played a stripped-down set for twelve people, and nobody looked at their phone once.

Who should we be listening to?

Whatever drags something honest out of you. But for me, Nick Cave, Nine Inch Nails, Jeff Buckley, Depeche Mode, David Bowie, and Mark Lanegan. That’s the kind of sound that shaped DARK MILES. Melancholic. Intense. Beautiful in a broken sort of way.

What can save our venues?

Respect, policy, and people who still care. We need laws that protect culture, not just condos. And we need to stop treating live music like a nuisance. It’s therapy for some of us. Cheaper than meds, and louder.

Where is your favourite venue?

KOKO in London. That place has history in its bones. Ornate, chaotic, intimate, like playing inside a cathedral that decided to rebel. There’s something about the way sound moves through that space. It wraps around you. It haunts you, in the best way.

Anything you want to share?

Yeah. Don’t wait for things to be perfect to start doing what you need to do. Most of DARK MILES was born out of chaos, doubt, and insomnia. If you’ve got something burning inside you, let it out. Even if it’s ugly. Especially if it’s ugly. That’s where the truth lives.